Money is the lifeblood of every business; it’s the Qi. And an acupuncture practice can not ignore the basics of business. The main focus of a Chinese Medicine practitioner is to deliver holistic care to patients – in essence creating a safe space to share the medicine. But if you’re in business for yourself, you have to come to terms with the idea of exchanging healing services for money. Running your own clinic is grounded in nature’s fundamental relationships of exchange; of creating and sharing value—which is a concept that underpins capitalism.
In this discussion with Eric Grey, we get into the nitty-gritty of making practice work from a business and clinical standpoint. We discuss some of the snags to watch out for when going into business and running a practice. Additionally we focus on the importance of due diligence and conscious planning, adapting to your stage of development/business cycle, and having an exit strategy. The good news is the whole process can help season us into resilient professionals.
Listen into this conversation on running a successful practice, working through conflicts, tending to operation issues, dealing with uncertainty, and how capitalism can be a beneficial force in your practice and community.
In This Conversation We Discuss:
- Make sure your building the business that you want to work in
- The influence of your outlook on money is important, especially if you are considering a partnership
- Dealing with conflicts and having an exit strategy
- Talking about money and coming to terms with the idea of selling your service for money
- Having a job vs having a business
- How the planning process acts like a compass for your business
- Business lifecycle – What’s needed at your stage of development?
- The uncertain nature of life and business
- When business drops off it’s not always a marketing problem, it could be an operations problem
- Tending to operational issues to elevate the patient experience – creating a safe, efficient, and trustworthy space
- An ethical business is one that makes sure it is sustainable so our patients can rely on us to be there for them
Embrace planning & evaluation no matter your stage in business. Regularly stepping back, taking stock, and charting a course towards some exciting horizon keeps businesses vital & nimble – essential!
I am a Chinese herbalist, writer and teacher who lives and practices on the Oregon Coast. I run a busy, successful clinic with my wife who is a massage therapist. I graduated from NUNM in 2009, where I then taught herbs, business, practice management, ethics and clinical reasoning.
Since leaving NUNM, I have chiefly written and taught online through my website, Deepest Health, which has been in operation since 2007 and explores many topics in East Asian Medicine. Outside of East Asian medicine, I have strong interests in the wise use of technology, Philosophy and History of science and like to spend most of my time in the forest and by the ocean.
Links and Resources
Visit Eric’s website at watershedwellnessastoria.com
Want to up your business game? Visit deepest health.com
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